


Freedom

by Halcy (halcyonweekend)



Series: Freedom (DaS!verse) [1]
Category: Dark Souls, Metal Gear
Genre: Alternate Universe, Crossover, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-14
Updated: 2014-07-14
Packaged: 2018-02-08 19:32:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,995
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1953423
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/halcyonweekend/pseuds/Halcy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Chosen Undead takes upon a quest of his own, breaking away from his duty.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Freedom

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally a oneshot, but it developed into 3 parts. I borrow a lot from the Dark Souls universe, but there's a lot of creative license here.

Stone and steel melted together as waves thundered below him. He edged across weathered stone, relative safety just within arm's reach. It was a hard fought battle to reach the keep's peak, with many horrible beasts and rabid undead, but soon the fog gate was before him.  
  
A bonfire already lit was there to greet him, kindled beyond normal limits. Kaz took this time to regroup and prep for coming battle, preparing his most powerful spells, and keeping his shield close. There wasn't much about Blackiron Keep that could be said with certainty. Even who ruled over it and its minions was a mystery. Which meant Kaz had little else to go on for whatever he would face.  
  
As he stepped past the fog, he could feel the light being drained around him. Even his Estus dimmed until it was emerald...and empty.  
  
All light and life would be snuffed, except for the room's center. A greatsword dwarfed only by Artorias's was engulfed in black flame.  
  
 _'Kissed by Darkness, tickled by Light, inhuman edge a wicked delight. Whispers of words from eons ago, speak of power interminable.'_  
  
This was what the tomes had spoke of.  
  
No thuds and thumps of an angry beast, no demented prayers to an unkind god, Kaz heard and felt no other being. His only companion was the unending blackness. He was far from safe, but fearless all the same.  
  
As he came upon the massive weapon, the flames which engulfed it wavered, just enough that its hilt would not be licked by abyssal fire. His hand wrapped around the steel, but before he could reap his reward, a voice spoke.  
  
"Chosen Undead...it has been a long time."  
  
Though he could not connect a voice to a form, it sounded so familiar. Rough and weathered like the keep's walls, with a warmth that was unique to this desolate place. He took a shot in the dark. "...Boss?"  
  
As the name left his lips, a shiver shot up his being. There was someone behind him.  
  
"And here I thought I lost you..."  
  
There He stood, clad in glossy black armor, his helm and gauntlets the missing pieces. His features hadn't aged a day, though his remaining eye had its color siphoned away, leaving a dull grey. The shards embedded in his forehead remained as sharp as ever.  
  
The apprehension which he carried like a trusty weapon dissipated as he came into view. "Boss! Of all the places to find you,  I wouldn't dream of it being here."  
  
Kaz took a few steps closer, unsure of how to act. The history between them could fill volumes of tomes, yet he couldn't bring himself to get closer. Instead, he knelt, his head bowed. "Boss, I need your assistance."  
  
"As I yours."  
  
His cadence gave him a shiver, but he would not be distracted by an old friend...if he could help it. "The greatsword planted here is what I came for, however there's no way I can wield it." As powerful as he was, the blade would do his abilities no favors. He was a sorcerer, not a warrior.  
  
"So you ask for my strength?"  
  
"To start with..."  
  
"What luck. Your strength is what I need as well. You've grown so very powerful. One could say you've surpassed Logan and Seath in the mastery of sorceries." His flattery was a delight.  
  
"I've defeated them both. Logan...went hollow soon after Seath's defeat." His grip tightened on his catalyst, a reminder of his descent into madness.  
  
"How unfortunate."  
  
No use in mourning the cursed dead. "Never mind them, will you offer me your sword and oath?"  
  
"I relish the chance to see you in battle, just like old times..." There was a fire in his words that brought memories, fond and otherwise.  
  
With glee, he brought himself up on his feet, raising his weapon. "Then it's agreed. We go to Firelink at once--"  
  
"...but not in this battle.  I am needed here, as are you."  
  
"I am only here for the sword. And you of course... It can be like old times."  
  
Boss beckoned him, a hand reaching out, its palm upward. "Chosen Undead, your quest has come to an end. Your true goal was not to link the Flame, but to return to me."  
  
"And I have found you." The more his former confidant spoke, the more suspicious he became. "Speak no more, take up your sword! If it is freedom that you seek, I'll break you from this unholy cell." Kaz took his hand, grasping it tight. His skin was ice.  
  
"You speak of what you do not understand." He relaxed his grip. "It seems your efforts coming here were wasted. I can offer you nothing but an alternative. Of course, it's for a price..."  
  
"What do you ask of me?"  
  
It was a gentle tug forward, yet it felt as if the violent waves below him thrust him into the other's arms.  
  
Boss leaned forward, his lips barely touching the other's ear. "Your humanity."  
  
The black warrior forced his face to meet his. Kaz could see the gleam of inhuman teeth through parted lips. They were as sharp as the shards and as consuming as his obsidian armor.  
  
Though they hadn't touched flesh, he could still feel the poison hovering inches away, ready to drain him.  
  
Thinking quickly, he pulled out his catalyst from his vice and cast a Soul Spear at point blank range.  
  
It served nothing more as a distraction, as he escaped the venom and placed some distance between them.  
  
"What manner of beast are you?" There was a rare panic in his words as he cast a Crystal Soulmass and fled back further.  
  
"I won't let you leave this time, Kaz." It was the first time he had spoken his name in years. Filled with jealousy and bitterness, it was not as he had dreamed. "You are mine and mine alone, the fate of your kind be damned."  
  
He backed up, leaping to where the black fire's light couldn't touch. Before Kaz could react, a hail of shards tore through him, small bits of stone shredded armor and skin.  
  
His body failed him momentarily, as the shards began to siphon the remaining souls he had. It was as painful as a million deaths, with none of the reprieve. It was through sheer force of will that Kaz remained standing, much to the facade's chagrin.  
  
What stepped back out into the wan light was not a warrior clad in shadow, but something much more fearsome.  
  
A single eye, hinted by the light, stared back at him. It took two massive steps forward, revealing claws, arms of iron and obsidian scales, not unlike the black warrior's shards. As more came to light, he was greeted with the head of serpent and canine fused together. Tongue and teeth bared as it let out a hiss.  
  
It pounced, claws piercing the stone where Kaz stood only moments ago. With his movement restored, he could see more of the foul creature. Where its metal carapace ended, scales began. A tail as dark as shadow phased through light and dark, whipping wildly.  
  
The Boss of Blackiron, in all his wicked glory.  
  
He didn't have much time to berate himself, as it reared back to snap at him with his fangs. It reminded him of the gaping dragon, though this fight would not be so easily won.  
  
Kaz cast his pyromancies first, firestorm offering vague hints to the demon's path. Despite being pelted with fireball after fireball, the demon looked unscathed. Crystal and soul spells seemed more effective, as the soulmass caused him to flinch slightly.  
  
As he threw soul spears and masses at him, he felt more confident in his assault. Kaz's enchanted Falchion also carried its weight whenever he would manage a quick slash. Though there was much left to go, his magic mastery would claim him victory.  
  
After a while, he had begun casting his crystal spells, limited severely by his choice of catalyst. Logan's had since outlived its usefulness, so he has quickly switched to Crystallization.  
  
As he moved to cast another spell, the shadow tail knocked him from behind, launching him into the grasp of the creature. His claws sunk deep into the armor, piercing flesh and muscle. His body froze again, his life being drained despite his struggling. When satisfied, the demon threw Kaz to the ground, leaving him with bleeding and losing strength by the moment.  
  
With the weapon as a crutch, he just barely managed to be pulled up. The demon let out a deafening roar and slammed his limbs down on either side of the sorcerer. The shockwave caused him to fall to his knees. He was now face to face with the man, face to face with the cruel beast he loved.  
  
Though deep and guttural, he could still hear words from Blackiron. "Your body is mine, your soul is mine."  
  
Kaz felt he would go mad with pain and relent to his former master. Though hollow, something human in him remained. He pulled back and shakily raised the catalyst.  
  
With a final cast of Crystal Soul Spear, he pierced through the demon's only eye, spilling blood and bile.  
  
The beast hissed, grasping at the gored remains of his eye. He was blind, and with his blindness, he tore at the air, the stone, and itself. Obsidian and blood flew everywhere.  
  
He let out one last shrill howl and burst into nothing, leaving only his soul. The stone still embedded in Kaz's skin became brittle, and crumbled away with each movement toward the greatsword.  
  
Its flames died down, exposing the hilt and leaving traces of the demon's energy. Every movement he made felt numb.  
  
 _Kaz...I'm already a demon..._ Words whispered on a bloody, ruined battlefield eons ago came to his weary mind. Words he thought were nothing but bloodlust.  
  
When his hand gripped the hilt again, the boss soul pulsated in his other hand. No matter how hard he pulled, the blade remained buried in the tile. The soul grew warmer and brighter with each fruitless tug.  
  
Kaz let go and eyed the soul of the demon, noticing the reactions it gave. He brought it close to the sword, it was unchanged. All he could do was devour the soul and reap his reward, and that he did. Though his reward was anything but rewarding.  
  
As the thousands of souls entered his form, the humanity returned to him lit his form as it did the greatsword. He was ablaze in the black flame, and was in such great pain. This was not burning but rather tearing, pulling, ripping his very core. Metal began to fuse to flesh, his body becoming a cruel, broken facade of a Channeler. Memories and lives past filled the senses, and were it not for the flames, he would feel nothing but a void.  
  
Kaz flailed around and threw himself to the ground, trying to smother the flames.  
  
In his desperate attempt to end the pain, he brushed against the weapon. His arm phased into the blade. He pulled and pulled, trying to retrieve his limb. Each frantic jerk away pulled him only deeper. The fires of the sword and his hollowing form melded, creating an inferno that, for just a brief moment, lit the room fully. With only his face still exposed, he let out a scream rivaling the roar of fire.  
  
The Patriot shone bright as it took hold of another victim. The flames that surrounded it grew in size, the humanity and hollow acting as kindling.  
  
 _"Kissed by Darkness, tickled by Light, inhuman edge a wicked delight. Whispers of words from eons ago, speak of power interminable..._  
  
 _Moths to a flame, illusion its game. Its hunger forever, its touch a blight, the Patriot takes another t'night."_  
  
Laughter echoed throughout the chamber. With His wish fulfilled, their two souls were bound, forever in the sword, forever together.


End file.
